Study about Municipal Investment in Childhood and Adolescence in the period 2005-2008

Background 
In November, 2006, Save the Children Noruega in Nicaragua published a study called " The Investment in Childhood and Adolescence by 39 Municipal Governments of Nicaragua - Period 2001-2004 and 2005 ", that was constituted in the baseline on the subject matter. Always in coordination with the Network of Municipal Governments, in the year 2009 there was need to realize a  second study that it was including the following period of municipal governments, from 2005 to 2008.

Purpose/objective 
To know the condition of the investment in childhood and adolescence in 44 municipal governments, correspondent to the period 2005-2008, for the promotion and monitoring of the fulfillment of action lines of the Network of Municipal Governments Friends of the Childhood and Adolescence for the period 2009-2012.

Methodology 
The study was organized in ten steps:
1. Delimiting of the concept of direct investment in childhood and adolescence.
2. Selection of the sample of municipalities (44 municipalities: 29 % of total).
3. Create instruments for compilation of information.
4. Identification of  sources of information (documentaries and personnels).
5. Creation of database and gathering data interfaces.
6. Documentary review.
7. Accomplishment of  induction´s workshops for gathering of  information.
8.  Interviews with municipalities personnel.
9. Processing, systematizing and analysis of the information.
10. Elaborate consolidated report.

Key findings 
1) 98 % of municipalities issued dispositions favorable to the girls, boys and teenagers, overcoming 69 % of the period 2001-2004. Also in 93 % they provided a Councilman or technician assigned to attend the subjects matter of the childhood vs.72 % in 2001-2004. These results reflect a clear trend of the municipal governments to deepening his commitment on the fulfillment of the Chilhood Rigths.  2) During 2005-2008 14.5 % of all the funds of the group of 39 municipal governments they were destined depending on the childhood. The same percentage was also the annual average of investment in childhood related to the annual average of all his incomes. In the previous period the annual average of investment in childhood was 8.5 %.  3) In relation to the previous period, during 2005-2008 the municipal average of investment in childhood and adolescence registered an increase of 62.9 %, there being fulfilled by the Line of Action # 1 of the Network of Municipal Governments Friends of the Childhood and the Adolescence referred to the increase of the investment in childhood. 4) Most of the investment in childhood was realized by resources transferred to the municipalities. 5) During four years of the period 2005-2008, the group of municipal governments duplicated the investment realized in the years 2001-2004.  6) From all resources invested in childhood and adolescence by the municipalities,  66.5 % was aimed to education (3.9 % more that in the period 2001-2004), 14.3 % to health - nutrition- healthy environment (2.5 % less), 15 % to recreation - culture (3.2 % less) and 4.2 % to other rights and actions (1.8 more %). 7) There were advances in the incorporation of the Chilhood Rigths in plans and municipal budgets, nevertheless the majority of municipalities still do not fix goals and they are not precising  to whom and how many peoples they are beneficiarying.

Recommendations 
1) Expand among the municipal governments the good practices in favour of the Boys, girls and adolescentes, such as:   integration to the Network of Municipal Governments, the assignment of persons in charge to attend to childhood, the approval of Municipal Policies of Childhood, the participation in Contests for the Boys, girls and adolescentes, the support to the Municipal Comission for Childhoold and Adolescence Afairs (CCAA), systematic consultation to girls and boys and the promotion of their specific rights. 2) To deepen the incorporation of the approach in rights of the childhood in the whole system of municipal planning, developing municipal coherent policies, needing the responsibilities of the municipal government, defining goals, actions and amounts of investment in the length, medium and short term. 3) To promote the accountability and systematic consultation to girls, boys and teenagers as substantive part in the planning, management, execution and evaluation. For it,  create, reinforce or support mechanisms that assure their active participation, respecting their own dynamics and interests. 4) To promote the legislative legal authority of the municipal governments for the fulfillment of the Boys, girls and adolescentes, promoting ordinances, resolutions or agreements specifically in such aspects as violence against the childhood, economic exploitation, sexual exploitation and traffic with girls, boys and teenagers.

Comments from the organisation, if any
SC is agree with external consultant team all Conclusions and Recommendations of the Evaluation.